Limited Longhorn Steering Wheel Cracks

[SierraHog]

I’ve got me a fancy 2022 3500 Limited Longhorn with roughly 10k miles. Question: anyone have any issues with the clear coat cracking on the the upper portion of the steering wheel? I have several straight line cracks appearing at random locations around the wheel. They are roughly 1/2” in length and are confined to top wood portion. I can feel them but can’t seem to get a good photo for reference. They don’t appear to be just scratches. I use a weather tech windshield cover whenever the truck is parked. I also use the side window covers whenever it’s a little hotter out. I can’t imagine it’s sun damage.

 

[cj8rockcrawler]

Do you use hand sanitizer a lot? It came up that some people have damaged their steering wheels that way on the Jeep forum.

 

[SierraHog]

Do you use hand sanitizer a lot? It came up that some people have damaged their steering wheels that way on the Jeep forum.

Never use it. Don’t use lotions either.

 

[jebruns]

Sounds like a warranty claim to me. I'm not a huge fan of that wood portion on my 22 LL either. But I like the rest of the interior enough to put up with it. We bought an Escalde new back in '99, and it's still in the extended family, running strong. It has the wood on the steering wheel the same way the LL's do. Still going strong, although it has faded a bit.

 

[SierraHog]

Sounds like a warranty claim to me. I'm not a huge fan of that wood portion on my 22 LL either. But I like the rest of the interior enough to put up with it. We bought an Escalde new back in '99, and it's still in the extended family, running strong. It has the wood on the steering wheel the same way the LL's do. Still going strong, although it has faded a bit.

Thanks for the input. I thought the same thing about the warranty claim. I’ve never had the wood inserts and thought maybe this was a normal wear and tear issue others might be experiencing. I too am not a huge fan as it makes the wheel pretty slick when it gets cold.

 

[SierraHog]

Well, it’s back! Had the steering wheel replaced under warranty. Over a year and 20k miles later, the wood portion of the Longhorn wheel is cracking again at all of its seams. It’s even worse than before. I use full sun shades from Weather Tech year round so I can’t imagine it’s due to sun damage. I never use hand lotions or sanitizers. This is probably why they went to an all leather wheel on the newer models. Heading back to the dealer!

 

[Riccochet]

Could be something in the oils of your skin that you naturally secrete. Everyone has different body chemistry. My 2020 LL has zero cracks or fading, and it lives it's life outside 100% of the time in the hot NC sun.

Maybe see if they'll replace it with an all leather wheel.

 

[Brutal_HO]

Could be something in the oils of your skin that you naturally secrete. Everyone has different body chemistry. My 2020 LL has zero cracks or fading, and it lives it's life outside 100% of the time in the hot NC sun.

Maybe see if they'll replace it with an all leather wheel.

The 2022 wood and 23+ all leather wheels are not compatible as they switched to the 5th gen buttons.